Cartoon entitled "Following the Fashion" by James Gillray, 1794
School of Seven Bells exists because of two break-ups. When nu-shoegaze band On!Air!Library called it quits in 2005, that freed up Alley Deheza to work on projects with her special guy friend, Benjamin Curtis. When Curtis's main gig with nu-prog band Secret Machines kind of fell apart, School of Seven Bells was suddenly a higher priority. At some point, Alley's twin Claudia (who was also in On!Air!Library) joined the School. The band's name comes from a legendary (apocryphal?) pickpocket-training institution in South America, and Alpinisms is written as a set of fictional letters written between the seven members of the secret School.
I'm not sure what it is about Alpinisms that draws me in where other nu-shoegaze bands like Asobi Seksu have left me cold, but it would have been high on my top albums list of 2008 if I'd discovered it sooner. The glitchy electronic rhythms lay the foundation for very organic arrangements of guitar and keyboard. And the vocals of Alley and Claudia are definitely compelling, particularly when they sing in unison for a line or two before diverging into close harmony parts.
Also, the album is sequenced in an interesting way, with a first half built around one of their best songs, "Half Asleep", with the other songs emphasizing the band's varied approaches and "exotic" influences. Alpinism's second half showcases the 11-minute drone of "Sempiternal/Amaranth", which makes for a somewhat arduous listen, made worthwhile because it is followed by the album's three best songs, hidden right at the end of the album. Or, y'know, you could push the "skip" button and go straight to "Chain", probably my favorite song on the record, in spite of its use of the infamous "autotune" technology. The melody is haunting, and the song's chorus line, "I can't seem to remember my dreams lately," will stay with you in a way you might not expect from such a gauzy concoction.
"Chain" by School of Seven Bells
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